Jerrod Calhoun Gets FAVORABLE Schedule First Year in Cincinnati | College Basketball News Bearcats

Nick Niehaus and Eric Lilly break down the Cincinnati Bearcats’ newly finalized 2026-27 basketball schedule after the Big 12 officially announced conference opponents on Thursday. With summer workouts underway, Jerrod Calhoun’s first team in Cincinnati is beginning to take shape ahead of what looks to be another challenging season.

The Bearcats are once again set to face one of the toughest schedules in college basketball, featuring a loaded non-conference slate and another brutal run through the Big 12. Cincinnati will host rival Houston for both matchups this season, while also welcoming Kansas to Fifth Third Arena and playing home-and-home series against Texas Tech and West Virginia.

The guys discuss what the schedule means for Cincinnati’s NCAA Tournament hopes, early expectations for Calhoun’s first season, and why the Bearcats could once again be tested by one of the toughest conferences in the country.

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The Bearcats' Big 12 conference basketball opponents are finalized for the 2026-27 season inCincinnati. The conference announced the matchups on Thursday as summer workouts spark up for Jerrod Calhoun's first team in the Queen City.

Cincinnatihas a ton of big-name opponents lined up in the non-conference front and will likely be in the top-30 most-difficult schedules again this season as a member of one of the toughest college basketball conferences in the nation.

They do get to face their top nemesis, Houston, at home in both matchups this season, while also facing Kansas in Fifth Third Arena and Dualing home/away matchups with Texas Tech and West Virginia.

Calhoun laid out his message for selling the program this offseason to The Field of 68's Rob Dauster.

"What we're really trying to sell is ourselves (the staff) right now, we won 101 games in four years, right?" Calhoun said in the interview. "I'd like to have more, but you know, there's a lot of losses in there too that sting. But that part of it, we can talk about 25 wins (per year) in four years, an elite offensive team over those years, we play a very upbeat new school system that players love to play in the best league in America.